God of War’s Norse Setting Will Not Feature Vikings

The unveiling of a new God of War at E3 2016 left us with numerous questions, stretching across how the new events came to be and about the series’ turn into a new direction. Sony, however, plans to answer all of these questions in due time. Game director Cory Barlog, on the other hand, is ready to straighten out a few of the rumors, to help us sleep better.

The God of War franchise has so far dwelled in Greek mythology. Now, though, the series is moving on to Norse mythology instead. There are questions on how such a decision would impact the timeline. While speaking with GameSpot during E3 2016, Barlog explained that every culture has its own beliefs and they all coexisted with one another. The only thing to note is that they were all “separated by geography”. This suggests that following the events of God of War 3, Kratos simply left a ruined Greece for another region that is under the rule of Norse gods.

He further clarified that a Norse setting does not mean that Kratos is in the viking timeline. Touching upon history and lore, Barlog explained that the gods had abandoned everyone during the viking era. God of War takes place during the initial Norse period “where gods did walk the Earth, when monsters were real, before they became extinct.”

Elsewhere in the interview, Barlog talked about the relationship between Kratos and the young child. The inclusion of the boy is going to change the way fans play the game and approach problems. “There’s some fascinating potential here for what Kratos would be like if given a second chance,” he pointed out.

God of War is still without a release date, but it’s strongly speculated that the game will release in fall 2017.